10/8 Vic sewage, BC drought, WA green govs, Ferndale stormwater, BC ferries, Tatoosh Is, Western Flyer, UP trees, Sound flyway, CSI BC, Shelly Solomon

Cliff Mass writes: “Our supernaturally dry, warm period is going to end on Friday.  We are close enough now and the agreement of the models are sufficient to suggest substantial confidence in this forecast (yes, there is a small probability it could be wrong)....”  Summer is Over on Friday

Flushed with no pride: Before a by election date has even been set, the sewage has hit the fan in the federal riding of Victoria as the Liberal and Green candidates have come out against a proposed secondary sewage treatment plant estimated to cost $782.7 million. Both Green party candidate Donald Galloway and Liberal Paul Summerville, who is to be acclaimed as the party's candidate on Oct. 13, are against the project.  Greens, liberals share view on sewage  

Rivers and streams throughout Vancouver Island are drying to trickles after a two-month drought and fears are growing that salmon will not be able to reach spawning grounds. Andrew Thomson, federal Fisheries and Oceans south coast area director, said his department, helped by volunteers, salmon enhancement societies and First Nations, are searching for ways to help the fish if rain doesn't fall.  Island drought imperils salmon-spawning grounds

Meanwhile, Catalyst Paper is trying to find a balance between aiding a salmon run and having to shut down its operations. Continuing dry conditions have created the possibility that the company will run out of water about Oct. 31, curtailing or halting operations, said Brian Houle, environmental manager at Crofton mill. Catalyst holds the water licence for a weir managed by the Forests Ministry.  Catalyst ponders shutdown for fish  

The Washington gubernatorial nominees are in the final weeks of campaigning. Republican Rob McKenna and Democrat Jay Inslee are touring the state for photo opps and debates. There’s usually a question thrown in about environmental issues, but overall, the environment hasn’t been a major focus in this election. One expert in Washington politics says that’s because the economy is dominating the list of priorities for Washington voters. Ashley Ahearn reports. Washington Gubernatorial Candidates On The Environment


The city of Ferndale will join a dozen western Washington cities and one county to appeal a new, stricter state stormwater permit. The appeal claims that new requirements to reduce pollution in storm runoff will take up too much staff time, restrict development and create financial hardships for municipalities. The Ferndale City Council voted 5 to 2 on Monday, Oct. 1, to pay $15,000 to add the city's name to the appeal. It targets stronger requirements for controlling runoff from construction sites, and for inspecting and cleaning stormwater intakes, pipes, catch basins and ditches. Ralph Schwartz reports. Ferndale joins appeal of stricter stormwater rules

BC Ferries is navigating a critical point in its history. When it was established as a Crown corporation in 1960, it had a mandate to nurture coastal communities – and, by extension, the province’s economy. Towns like Sandspit were built around this promise and remain utterly dependent upon it. Today BC Ferries is one of the largest ferry fleets in the world, a lifeline for coastal residents and businesses, and a key service for the tourism industry.  But the fleet – with an average age of 30 years – needs renewal. Ridership is down – on many sailings, the crew outnumbers the passengers. Justine Hunter reports. For a ferry system gone adrift, problems of the future must be faced now    But, this weekend: Passenger parking lots were full at several B.C. Ferries terminals  

TATOOSH ISLAND, Wash. —From a stretch of rocky shoreline on this tiny island, one can, on any given morning, watch otters floating on their backs, elephant seals hauling out of the water and a bald eagle flying past murres huddled along a cliff face. The startled birds perform a synchronized dive into the sea, their ovoid black-and-white bodies resembling miniature penguins.... for over four decades, with the blessing of Makah leaders, Tatoosh has been the object of intense biological scrutiny, and scientists say they are seeing disturbing declines across species — changes that could prove a bellwether for oceanic change globally. Stacey Solie reports. Scientists Adopt Tiny Island as a Warming Bellwether   Sea also: Life on Tatoosh Island topic of Wednesday talk  

Crews worked Friday to salvage a boat that sank two weeks ago in the Swinomish Channel near the Twin Bridges area east of Anacortes. But this was no ordinary vessel. It was the Western Flyer, the 76-foot purse seiner featured in renowned author John Steinbeck’s books “The Sea of Cortez: A Journal of Travel and Research” and “The Log from the Sea of Cortez.” Steinbeck and marine biologist Ed Ricketts chartered the Western Flyer in 1940 to cruise from Monterey, Calif., to the body of water now known as the Gulf of California, or the Sea of Cortez. Gina Cole reports. Exhumed from the deep  

Cut ‘em, Dano: The Tacoma Narrows stretches out in blue splendor as Steve Fabre looks out the large front window of his University Place home on a clear afternoon. But the scenery is spoiled for him when he looks at the three large cherry trees across the street that block what he said was once a panoramic view of the waterway. “It just drives me nuts,” Fabre said. The concerns raised by him and by residents on other UP streets have prompted University Place leaders to launch a community discussion about how best to protect views obstructed by maturing trees and other vegetation. University Place might bolster protection for Puget Sound views  

Birds' flyways unite today's Audubon Society, its leader told about 90 of Washington's top bird enthusiasts Saturday at Poulsbo City Hall. When David Yarnold took over two years ago as president and CEO, the 50 states shared no conservation vision. "We didn't have any glue," said Yarnold, who spoke at Washington Audubon's annual meeting and helped dedicate the Puget Sound Loop of the Great Washington Birding Trail. He hit on the idea of skyways — "four superhighways in the sky with rest stops and homes beneath them" — as a means to not only help birds and habitat but bridge state and local boundaries. Ed Friedrich reports. Kitsap is link in birds' 'skyways,' says Audubon president

The two small platforms used to contain the complete carcasses of two 20-kilogram pigs diverted from the slaughterhouse. Hoisted up from the ocean floor six months later, however, they contain bones and silt and a mystery, the unraveling of which could assist in investigations into human bodies found in the ocean. Science, engineering help unravel mysteries in Strait of Georgia  http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Science+engineering+help+unravel+mysteries+Strait+Georgia/7351967/story.html

If you like to watch: Shelly Solomon, biologist-turned-filmmaker, brings two of her acclaimed films to the Admiral Theatre in downtown Bremerton on Friday. "River as Spirit: Rebirth of the Elwha" features stunning aerial photography of the Elwha River before removal of two dams started last year. Voices of Native Americans from the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe tell of the spiritual significance of the river and the hope for a renewed watershed. The aerial scenes were filmed with a $600,000 Cineflex camera, which features unique gyro-stabilization, which allows for smooth shots even when the wind buffets the helicopter. That same Cineflex system was used to photograph the forests of Illahee for the second film to be shown at the Admiral, "Illahee: Saving Puget Sound One Watershed at a Time." Chris Dunagan reports. Elwha, Illahee featured in two upcoming films at Admiral Theatre

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 900 PM PDT SUN OCT 7 2012
MON
W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 12 SECONDS.
MON NIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 3 FT AT 12 SECONDS. AREAS OF FOG AFTER MIDNIGHT.
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